This is just a fluffy one-shot I wrote for Lance's birthday back in 2017 and decided to cross-post here. It wasn't written to be compliant with anything after season four, I believe, so don't worry about spoilers for the later seasons. I haven't seen them myself yet.
Isabel McClain was a kindly woman with an extraordinary memory. The latter fact was viewed as a rather powerful weapon by her five children, as she could recall all of their blunders and embarrassing moments they had ever experienced.
She could remember the day Nalda, her eldest, was born with a startling clarity. The girl was the ideal older sibling - responsible, mature, and caring. She took her education very seriously, and would be the first of Isabel's children to leave the nest when she went to America for college.
Then there was Anton. Her oldest boy. He was just like his father, Luís. Strong, protective, and naturally athletic. He wasn't as school oriented as Nalda, but he was just as dedicated. He was the one who taught all of his younger siblings how to swim in the ocean waves of the beach not far from their home.
Then Lance. Her didn't seem to have the maturity as his elder siblings, but he was charismatic and wore his heart on her sleeve. He was quick to make decisions, and allowed his heart to take priority over his mind. It made him no less adventurous, allowing him to be the next one to leave for the states when he got into the Galaxy Garrison as he chased after the stars she caught him staring at all his life.
Lance was followed by Xavier, who was much quieter than his predecessor. He was quiet and polite, but held Lance's bravery and Anton's protectiveness of his family. It was because of Xavier that they kept Mia, a cat he had found while out with his father one day. She was reclusive, and hissed at almost all of them besides Xavier himself. She had yet to see someone not charmed by her baby boy.
Next was Alysa. She was a troublemaker, but also had a curiosity that burned like a fire in her. She was constantly exploring, giving her mother and father more than a few near-heart attacks when she suddenly vanished, only to reappear an hour later covered in dust or dirt and laughing her head off.
Isabel had been home, preparing dinner while she planned on how to chew her middle child out. He had promised to call yesterday, but she had not been able to reach him all day. She sighed, brushing her hair out of her face as she heard Xavier and Alysa greeting her husband who had just gotten home behind her.
That was when the phone rang.
Isabel quickly wiped her hands off, before hushing her children as she answered the phone. She continued to stir the pot, as she smiled at Luís, who was currently holding Alysa while Xavier clung to his back.
Her smile quickly fell as she listened to what the man on the other side of the phone had to say.
Her hands began to shake and she stopped in her cooking as the man informed her that her middle child - Lance, adventurous Lance who chased after his dreams, impulsive Lance who broke his wrist when he was Alysa's age because he tried to make a zipline from his room to a nearby tree - was presumed dead during a lockdown that had happened the day prior.
No, the smile was long gone, and would not resurface for quite some time.
It took three years to defeat Zarkon and Lotor. Three years for them to topple the empire that had been over ten thousand years in the making.
The Galra weren't all gone, of course. Their leadership had been completely dismantled however, and with a lack of organization, they lost control on a large amount of planets they had previously held with an iron fist. The Blade of Marmora and various rebel groups took advantage of this weakness, and successful prison breaks and uprisings in enslaved worlds were common.
Voltron was no longer needed. The Paladins had completed their mission.
The universe was safe.
Three years.
Three years since he had last spoken to any other human besides those who had accompanied him on this journey that had started when they found the Blue Lion.
Three years since he last heard from or saw his family.
Three years since he had been home.
The Paladins temporarily parted ways. They still had communicators that Pidge had made, that Allura and Coran also held. It was to keep in contact, Pidge told them, or in case of an emergency.
Allura and Coran were going with Shiro. Lance didn't know if it was permanent or temporary, but he did know that Allura and Shiro were probably not going to be separated any time soon. He mentally hoped that, for Shiro's sake, his parents were rather accepting and patient.
Then again, if they were anything like him, then they were definitely both of those things.
Lance, for his part, now walked along a dirt path he remembered like the back of his hand. Keith was walking beside him, looking around the world with curiosity.
Shiro, Pidge, and Hunk all went to reunite with their families, and Lance had brought Keith with him to meet his. He knew the Red Paladin was an orphan - Keith's heritage had become a priority to know when it was revealed he had Galra blood - and he had seen the boy's home. A shack (cabin, Keith always insisted, but Lance would not have it) in the desert was hardly the homecoming one should have, especially after spending three years away from the entire planet.
No, Keith was coming with him, whether the boy liked it or not. That was what he told Keith, when they were all talking about what they were going to be doing. Keith had blinked in surprise, and started to protest, but was interrupted by Pidge's smirk and Hunk's knowing look and Shiro's soft smile as the head of Voltron declared it a great idea.
The dirt path was a shortcut to his home, and was away from crowded areas and prying eyes. He looked at the worn trail and wondered how many times he had walked this path with his family on their way to the beach.
It had been three whole years. Over a thousand days. What was that, over twenty thousand hours? That was a long time. Far too long.
It was to the point where the chirping birds seemed more like a memory. Where the faded blue sky and cool breeze made him keep wondering if this was all just a dream. Maybe he was just back in the Castle, and any moment now he would wake up and go eat some space goo for breakfast.
Keith bumped his hand gently, and Lance turned to him, and the boy gave him a reassuring smile. He must have sensed Lance psyching himself out, and Lance grinned back and took the boy's hand. He had noticed Keith didn't always properly initiate or ask for contact, but Lance had learned how to read his boyfriend easily.
"It's so different," Lance murmured, as if talking too loud would break the illusion. He looked around them at the beautiful scenery. So familiar, yet so...foreign. "We've been gone for too long."
Keith was silent for a moment, "At least we aren't here to protect the world from Zarkon or Lotor." His voice was soft, and Lance looked to meet his violet eyes. The only physical sign that he wasn't completely human. "We are here because the fight is over." Keith squeezed his hand slightly. "We won."
"We won." Lance echoed. He could recall thinking at the beginning that if Zarkon has spent ten thousand years building this empire, how long will it take for us to tear it down?
And that was before he even knew Lotor's name, or the troubles the Galra prince would cause them.
They came to the top of the hill the dirt path had led them up.
Lance stared at the old house that was now clearly in view. It was exactly as he recalled it, but still different in tiny ways. Seemingly insignificant ways. The old gate that used to always be open was locked shut. Quite a few of the windows - two of which he knew belonged to what was his room - had curtains drawn, which would have been something unheard of when Lance was here years ago. His mother liked the view to the world, whether it was sunlight that streamed in or a view of the rain pouring down, the curtains remained open.
Keith squeezed his hand reassuringly, and Lance realized he had halted the moment he had seen the house. He let Keith lead him down the dirt path, across the lawn, and towards the front door.
Lance swallowed. It was a...was it a Saturday? Sunday? Would Alysa and Xavier be home? He wasn't even sure what month it was if he was honest with himself. They had completely forgot about time on Earth due to the overwhelming homesickness. They had only really celebrated birthdays, and they did that all on the same day due to the fact they had no idea what month or day it was on Earth.
The sun's heat told him it was sometime in summer, unless it was a heatwave. Other than that, he had nothing to tell him anything about the date.
Was his family even going to be home? Maybe they'd be at the beach. Would he be showing up to an empty house?
He took a deep breath and walked up to the front door. He let go of Keith's hand as he stepped forward to knock, but he let his hand (that was shaking slightly, but if Keith noticed, he didn't comment) waver for a moment. How would they react? Would they be mad? Hate him? Surely they thought he was dead by this point...was he just hurting them more be returning?
He knocked twice. Loudly.
He heard a female voice - his mother's, he recognize - call for them to wait for a moment, and he stepped back to be next to Keith once more. The boy nodded, giving him a smile and Lance attempted to smile back. This was it. This was finally it.
The door swung open, and there was his mother. She looked so similar to when he left that for a moment he wondered if any time had passed at all.
But he quickly realized it had. She looked more tired than she had when he'd last seen her. Her bright smile no longer was the default look on her face. Concern shot through him, but he wasn't given another moment to think about it.
She froze when she saw him, and he gave her a weak smile. "Mamá." He breathed, and, unable to contain himself, he rushed forward to give her a hug. Tears started to leak out of his eyes.
"Lance?" He heard her breathe, and her hands tentatively started to return the embrace. "Is that you, my tortuga marina?" Sea turtle. Her nickname for him after his fascination for the creators after a project on them in elementary school. She tightened her grip, holding him with all of her might as if he might disappear again if she let him go.
He let out a laugh at the nickname. "It's me, mamá." He relished the word. It had been so long since he had seen his mother. So long since he was in Cuba.
So long since he had been on Earth.
So they remained like that for a few minutes. Just holding each other in a comfortable silence.
She leaned back to look at him, but did not release him from her grip. She looked him over, and he saw tears streaming down her face. He was no better. "They told us you were missing. They said you probably…" Died. She didn't say the word, but merely took a shaky breath instead. "You've returned to us."
He nodded, just as he heard a voice inquire from the inside of the house. "Isabel? Who was at the door?"
Lance recognized it as his father quickly, and his eyes widened. "Papá!" He cried. His exclamation was originally meant with stunned silence, before suddenly the sounds of his father rushing to the door, before stopping like his mother had. He watched as his father took in the entire sight - his wife sobbing with a smile on her face brighter than the Cuban sun, his presumably dead son looking at him with wide eyes and tears in his own eyes, and a Korean stranger who stood awkwardly off to the side.
His father moved forward, and with each step Lance could see the years returning to his body before his father wrapped his arms around him tightly with the strength he had held in his youth.
"I never thought I'd see you again." His father murmured, a sob in his own voice, and Lance felt a fresh set of tears.
"I missed you. A day never went by where I didn't think about you." Lance confessed, wrapping his arms around his father. His father was still taller than him, and, despite the muscle mass Lance had acquired over his years away, he felt like he was nine again. Just a kid. Just a young kid who longed to reach up to the stars and touch them, unaware that he might get burned in the process.
But then he thought of Keith, and realized that despite everything, he still didn't fear getting burned.
"Papá? Mamá?" Lance blinked through the tears to see Anton of all people in the doorway. The boy gasped, upon seeing him. "Lance?" The boy cried out, and that was when everything got chaotic.
Nalda, Xavier, and Alysa appeared a few moments later, all out of breath. Before Lance knew it, he was knocked to the ground as his siblings piled on top of him. Laughs and sobs filled the air as the middle McClain child returned home.
Lance didn't know how long had passed until he was standing once more.
His whole body slightly shaky from pure, unadulterated emotion as he slipped out of his sisters' grasp to grab Keith, and gently pulled him forward. He looked at Lance in surprise, and looked incredibly awkward for seemingly intruding on the reunion. Lance didn't care about that.
"This is Keith." He introduced his boyfriend as he wiped some tears from his eyes. "He...well, he made sure I didn't do anything too stupid. Kept me safe."
It was a testament to how awkward Keith must be feeling that he didn't take Lance's wording as an opportunity to make a playful jab at the Blue Paladin.
His mother moved forward to give Keith a big hug as well, and the boy looked at Lance with wide eyes as he initially tensed at the unexpected contact, before slowly relaxing and returning the hug confusedly. "Thank you for keeping my boy safe." His mother thanked Keith, holding his shoulders and Keith gave her a soft smile and nodded.
"You have an incredible son, Mrs. McClain." Keith said honestly.
"Oh, don't say any of that nonsense. It's Isabel to you." She said, mock angry. Everyone knew she wasn't. It wasn't possible to be angry on a day like that one.
"Where have you been?" Nalda inquired, her voice soft as she looked at her younger brother, as if she was scared she might frighten him away. Keith was released from Lance's mother grip, and silently made his way back to Lance's side.
Lance sighed, shaking his head slightly. "It's...I barely believe it myself. And I lived it." He confessed, and it was true. Voltron had snuck up on all of them far too quickly, and before they knew it they were on Arus, and were officially the last hope for the entire universe.
Lance's father shook his head. "There's time for that later. For now," His father grinned. "We celebrate! It is a special day, after all."
Lance blinked, sensing more to his tone than just Lance's return.
Xavier tugged on his hand, and he looked at his younger brother and realized how old the boy had gotten. He had been thirteen when he had seen him last, and now he was what? Sixteen?
So much time had passed.
But Xavier seemed unaware of that as he smiled at Lance freely. "Don't tell me you forgot your own birthday?"
It hit Lance faster than a blast from any Galra tech had.
His birthday.
He now knew the date. July 28th. His 20th birthday.
He looked at Keith and smiled widely, "It's my birthday." Lance breathed.
Keith smiled back at him, moving forward to take his free hand. "Happy Birthday." He whispered back to his boyfriend.
Lance smiled wider than he had in his entire life at the words flowed from his lover's mouth, because they were celebrating his birthday on his actual birthday because they knew the date because they were on Earth and he was with his family.
He laughed louder than he had in years, when Mia, their temperamental cat, decided that Keith's shoulders was her new favorite nest.
He breathed easier than he had in his entire trip across the universe when his mother broke out all the ice cream they had in the house, and was announcing they were making this birthday party the best one in all of Cuba.
Because for now, that time spent away didn't matter. It didn't exist.
Because it was his birthday, and he was home, he was with his family, and Keith was beside him.
He was surrounded by the ones he loved and who loved him, on the planet he loved more than any other in the universe.
He was finally home.